Look Away
by InnocentDiamond
Summary: Alice and Ace's perfect marriage is now over thanks to Fabia. Despite her suicidal thoughts and naivety, Shun offers to help Alice get Ace back. Things were going so well when Shun starts becoming "imperfect" and wonders if he should keep helping her or not.
1. Long Time No See

Alice's hand shook heavily as she signed her name on the paper. _Alice, you have to sign it! You have no choice!_ Tears fell from her eyes as she made this dreaded decision. Jake, Joe, and Chan waited patiently.

"Thank you so much for using our services. You two are now officially divorced." The receptionists took Alice's and Ace's ID cards, removed the Statement of Marriage labels with the machine, and returned them. "Have a nice day."

Alice was the first to stand up. "Come on, everyone. Let's go." Alice was about to leave the building when Ace stopped her.

"Alice, I know you're upset about this, but remember, I let everything for you. Also, I'll pay my share of child care for Eliza." Ace explained. "Thanks for making this decision. It's was very brave of you to do it." Ace stepped ahead and left the building.

"Alice, don't feel so sad. Life's not over yet." Jake comforted.

"Jake's right. Alice, if you ever plan on getting Ace back, then you should work hard for it." Chan added.

"Jake, Joe, Chan, let's just go back to the house." Alice wiped her eyes with her hand and left.

"A huge impact indeed. We just go home." Joe and the others followed Alice back to the house that she and Ace lived in. It seemed so empty now that Ace moved out.

"How did this all happen? I can't believe it was under our noses the entire time." Joe sighed. "Why does the world have to be so unfair?"

"If I knew about Ace's extramarital relationship earlier, then none of this would've happened." Chan looked at Joe. "Joe, when did you find out about this?"

"When I realized that Ace wasn't really out on a business trip, I knew that something was wrong." Joe replied.

"Who knew that Ace would be so...cruel? Like, Alice treats him very well. Just was does he like in Fabia?! My god!" Jake realized that Alice was still here. "No offence, Alice."

"None taken." Alice sighed. "If I could find out the truth everyone I got into a car accident, then I'd be willing to get my body paralyzed."

"Alice! Don't say that! And what do you mean by that?" Jake asked.

"I was still on the drip thing when he came in. I thought he was finally coming to see how I was, but he came with the divorce papers."

"Cruel with a capital C! Eh, Chan. Should we call _him_?" Joe emphasized.

"I don't know. What do you think, Jake? Should we?" Chan asked.

"Uh, that's really up to Alice." Jake replied. "Alice, what do you think?"

"Call who? Stop acting all suspicious! It's annoying."

"Joe asked if we should call your boss, just in case." Chan stuttered.

"No, thanks. We don't need anyone else being involved in this."

"Come on, Alice! He helped a lot with this, you know!" Jake complained.

Alice pondered for a moment and sighed. "Fine. Do whatever you want. I'm going to rest." Alice left the room, and Chan took her phone out and dialed numbers.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"Careful with the luggage, Mother. Remember that you broke your back and need to be careful." Shun helped his mother through the signs all around the airport. "Marina, you have my luggage, right?"

"All here. This business trip wasn't that bad, wasn't it? Except for Auntie's back, that is. What happened?" Marina dragged her, Shun's, and Shiori's suitcases.

"Well, some crazy person thought that taking my chair away when I was going to sit down for conference was funny, but it almost went fatal." Shiori sighed. "I'm going to be a goner. Shun, why don't you check up on the store first? It's been a couple of weeks. Marina, why don't we carry all this stuff back?"

"Be careful with your back, Mother. See you later!" Shun took his suitcase back and took a taxi back to Melody Toyota Services.

"Shun! You're back!" Marucho and the entire team of employees at Melody Toyota bowed as they welcome their beloved manager back. "How was the business trip? I hope it went smoothly. Where is Marina and Shiori-san?"

"Mother and Marina went back home first. Remember when I told you about the chair prank that broke her back? She needs to see a doctor ASAP." Shun took the clipboard from Marucho's hands. "Impressive sales. How's everyone been without me here?"

"Perfectly fine!" Everyone replied in unison. Shun smiled and gave the clipboard back to Marucho.

"Okay then. I hope that you're all _glad_ that I'm back, because there are going to be a _lot_ more improvements needed around here." He scanned the area in disappointment. "Are we missing some people? I have this weird feeling that I forgot to yell at someone."

"That's quite true, because Cha-" Shun's cell phone rang and interrupted Marucho.

"I'm so sorry." Shun flipped open and answered this phone. "Hello? This is Shun Kazami...so _that's_ why I'm not yelling at anyone today...wait, what? Oh, that is serious...why me? I get it. I'll be there. Bye." Shun hung up and sighed. "Marucho, can you take care of things for now? I need to talk to someone."

"No problem! We'll all do our best. Have a great day!" Marucho and the others bowed as Shun left Melody Toyota.

_I hope that she doesn't cry herself blind,_ Shun thought. _This is more serious that finding out the truth._

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Alice stood by the side of the bridge and looked. Finding out that Ace had been "secretly dating" Fabia was enough, but divorce was just too much. _I won't mind that you two secretly go out behind my back, but why did you have to divorce?_ Alice lifted her leg and was about to climb over the railing when somebody stopped her.

"Alice Gehabich, what the heck do you think you're doing?!" Shun took a plastic megaphone out of nowhere and yelled. "Get down from the railing!" Alice didn't listen and climbed on. Unfortunately, she slipped, and Shun caught her in time.

"What do you want?" Alice was going to cry, but that wasn't important. "Can't you just let me die? Ace doesn't want me, nobody else will either!" Alice pushed herself from Shun and stepped back. Shun, on the other hand, stayed as neutral as possible.

"Chan was right. There _was_ something wrong with Ace after all." He pointed out. "Alice, what happened? I've only been gone or a couple of months. _This_ is what happens to you when I _don't_ yell at you for daydreaming at work for a few months? My god!" Alice, instead of crying, grew furious at him.

"Eh, I'm about to commit suicide here, and you're complaining that you weren't here to give me a business lecture? What kind of person are you?"

"Just a person. If only you could yell like this to a _specific person_, I'd be really happy." Alice stepped back after hearing that.

"Why? Why does everything to be so unfair? I've been really nice to Fabia ever since she moved in for now, and _this_ is how she repays me?" Alice's mind was filled with mixed emotions.

"Alice, if you want to cry, just cry. I _might_ call you a crybaby for that, but it's important that you express your feelings. Let all that tension out of you."

Alice, seeing that Shun was perfectly right about everything, burst into tears in Shun's arms. _I guess that you did cry yourself blind from what Ace __and__ Fabia were doing the whole time._


	2. Need of Change

"You mean you knew everything all along, but you never bothered to do anything about it?" Shun asked after Alice stopped sobbing. "I don't see you doing that when somebody makes you spill your coffee during breakfast."

"Okay, I know that I shouldn't have been that passive, but at least Ace would still stay by my side, wouldn't he?" Alice _did_ have a point. "And Eliza needs a father, you know? You can't sacrifice your kids just so you can get your way."

"Yeah, but about Fabia...you yourself said that this is how she repays you. Don't you want to fight back or anything?"

"I really don't want to do anything right now. My head really hurts." All Alice wanted to do right now was stay away from everything.

"Alice, you can't just stay away from all this. You'll have to face it eventually. Also, Chan told me that you had a car accident. What happened?"

"Please don't ask. All I'll say is that Ace brought the most terrifying sheets of papers to me when I was _hurt_ in the hospital. He didn't even ask if I was okay!"

"Of course he didn't! Nobody's okay if they're in the hospital. I don't care about what papers he brought you. I'm just asking about the car. If it's damaged, then you or somebody will have to pay the repair fees."

Alice looked up and glared at Shun. "How can you actually talk about business issues at a time like this? Some friend you are."

"Right, because I'm not your friend. Shouldn't you be working at Melody Toyota right now? I'm going to cut your salary."

"And if I don't get enough money to take care of Eliza, I'm going to sue you."

"That's the spirit." Shun took out a notepad and wrote something. "I don't how having a distant cousin staying over for a while can lead to this, but if you're desperate and determined enough, then there is an alternative choice."

"What alternative choice? It'd better not involve Eliza or I will kill you."

"And if you kill me, then got look for another job. That alternative choice is to get your ex-husband back. Are you up for that?"

Alice trembled really badly. "I-I really can't do it. I'm too scared."

"Eh, you need to be a strong and determined person to do everything. If you can get out of your housewife life and work at Melody Toyota, then you can do this."

"Are you really going to help me? What's the catch?"

"Catch? Well, maybe you and Chan should stop _chit-chatting_ when you're at work! Now move it!" Shun randomly handed a napkin to Alice.

"Thanks, Kazami-san." Alice wiped her eyes. "Can you _please_ not cut off my salary? I really need all the money, and I'm really sorry for yelling at you and earlier th-"

"Just get back to work." Shun ordered while trying to hide his smile.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"All my stuff is here. Where do I put it?" Ever since Ace divorced with Alice, he packed up all his stuff and moved in with Fabia. "What a nice view."

"You can put it where ever you want, as long as it doesn't block the path." Fabia helped Ace with his luggage. "Ace, did you really get divorced with Alice-nee?

"Yes, I did. Would you like to see my ID?" Ace took his ID card out and showed the empty space where the marriage label used to be. "See? I told you that I'd do anything for you."

"You're the best! Now, I really want to go to some place to eat and celebrate your divorce. Some place luxurious and expensive..."

"Whoever celebrates a divorce? Fabia, why don't we just eat at home? I'll do the cooking, since you're not so experienced."

"_N__o_, I _don't_ want to eat at home! We _have_ to celebrate. How about that seafood restaurant by the docks? I heard that they have some specials on Fridays."

"I think that we should just go to a normal restaurant and-"

"I _want_ to go to _that specific_ restaurant, and I _mean it._"

"Okay, okay. We'll go to that restaurant and celebrate." Ace had no choice but to give in.

"Thanks, Ace! You _are_ the best!" Fabia went over and gave him the tightest hug that she ever gave. _See? Somebody really does love me in this world. Now will you take your words back__, Alice__?_

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Alice checked every single car in the showroom one last time before getting off work. Most people left early, so Alice stayed a little longer since she was on break for a couple of days. "That's about it. Chan, you want to get one last donut before we leave?"

"And if we eat a donut, then who's going to go home and cook dinner in time before the hunger team comes back?" Chan protested. "Come on, Alice. We have something really important to talk about when we get home."

"We do? Like what?" Suddenly, Shun came out of the hallway with something in his hand.

"Jake and Joe aren't the only ones coming over for dinner. I'll be there, too." Chan sighed and Alice gasped.

"See what I mean? I meant to tell you earlier, but-"

"It's okay, Chan. I'm actually glad that Kazami-san is coming over."

Chan was the one gasping now. "Wait, what? You were expecting him to come over? Oh, so the two of you already planned this out?"

"Chan, don't get Alice wrong. There's something important that I need to tell you and the others. Are we done talking, because I need to lock the doors?" Chan and Alice exited as Shun locked every single door in the showroom.

Back at Alice's house, Jake and Joe already came back from work. They, Chan, and Shun sat patiently at the dinner table as Alice served the last dish of food.

"I must say, Alice's culinary skills haven't been affected at all." Joe complimented. "Also, thanks for coming over for dinner today, Kazami-san. We really appreciate it."

"So what are we all here for? Originally, we were just here for dinner, but why is Kazami-san here?" Jake asked.

"Just to talk about a small thing that'll make a big difference." He took out the notepad that he had been writing on and passed it around to everyone to read.

"What is this?" Everyone asked as they read the list. When the notepad came back to Shun, he took a deep breath and explained.

"Well, we all know that Alice is _very_ impacted by the divorce, and despite all impacts, she needs to be focused during work. I can't just let her daydream at the showroom all day, right?" They all nodded.

He continued. "And the only way to make her not daydream again and _be suicidal_ is to get Ace back, right?" They nodded again. "This is what we'll do. We're going to, at all costs except for using Eliza, to break Ace and Fabia apart and get your beloved husband back. But I must warn you, there's going to be a lot of retaliation in this. Are you all up for it?"

The four of them looked at each other. Finally, they had a decision. "Yes, we are, Kazami-san! Just give us your orders."

Shun smirked at this one. "I don't really have the _entire _plan mapped out, but we are in need of change. And by change, I mean desperate changes."


	3. Back For a Few Days

It's been a couple of days since Shun was at Alice's house for the dinner meeting. Alice is getting suicidal again, and Shun is still struggling with making a perfect plan. He was just about finished when somebody knocked on the door of his office.

"Kazami-san? I hope I'm not bothering you. Are you coming over for dinner tonight again?" Alice asked directly. Shun fidgeted as he was _pretending_ to pack up his stuff and made a lot of noise.

"Alice, please do _not_ ask me a question like this when we are still working. This is still business hours, and only business can be talked here."

"Yeah, but there's only a minute left until 5 o'clock. Can't I just ask-" An alarm clock on Shun's desk beeped loudly.

"Okay then. _Now_ you may ask, because it's officially dismissal time." Suddenly, a huge crowd of employees pack their stuff and left the building like rush hour. "Ignore that. Yes, I will be coming over again. This time, you'd better be prepared." Shun was now _literally_ packing up to go. "Are you going or what?"

"Uh, yes! I'll be moving." Alice went back outside to pack her stuff.

Again, the same thing that happened last time happened again. Strangely enough, Jake and Joe were snacking on donuts.

"Eh, it's dinner time. Why are you still eating donuts?!" Chan screamed.

"Somebody caused a small fire in the lunchroom, so we couldn't get our food." Jake ate and talked. "Even the vending machine got destroyed. We're really hungry."

"That's pretty sad, but still shouldn't eat food that has so much sugar. It's bad for you." Alice replied as she served the soup.

"Tomorrow's Saturday, so why don't we go for a run in the park? Must walk or run at least 10,000 steps." Joe finished his donut and wiped his mouth. "Alice, you should be our coach.

"Right...and I'm afraid that Alice won't be going anywhere soon." Shun took a sip of his soup.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alice finally served everything and sat down.

"Not only will Alice be at somewhere else, but Ace will have to come back for now." Alice and everyone else gasped at that.

"Wait, where am I going?" Alice wanted this to be clarified.

"Because we need desperate changes, Alice will be staying over at my place of special training. I know that Chan and Joe have to go back to their home, and Jake doesn't always come back until late night. Somebody has to take care of Eliza." Everyone was shocked.

"Wait, so Alice will stay over at your house, where ever it is, for some training so that she'll change?" Chan was being too loud. "What's going on?"

"You heard what I said. Alice will be going over to my house Sunday afternoon, and Ace will have to come by Sunday morning. It is decided."

"Well, if this is all for getting Ace back, then I most certainly agree. Jake, Chan, and Joe, please make sure that Eliza is alright. Anyways," Dinner ended already, and Alice began cleaning up the table. "I need to tell Eliza this. Can you guys clean the table up and wash the dishes?"

"Sure. Everyone get ready for rock-paper-scissors." Everyone except Alice and Shun got their hands ready. Joe looked at Shun and said, "Kazami-san, what are you waiting for?"

"Excuse me? I have to wash the dishes, too?" Shun was surprised.

"Well, you did eat dinner here, so you have a part in it." Jake replied. "Anyway, let's get started. Rock, paper, scissors!" Jake, Joe, and Chan all had rock when Shun had scissors. "Looks like you're washing everything."

"Right...I help Alice with trying to get Ace back, and you're giving me the dish-washing treatment." Shun stood up from his seat and took the plates away. _But at least they're making life here quite festive._

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Next day at a local cafe, Ace sat silently as he waited for Alice to come. "So sorry to keep you waiting, Ace!" Alice quickly sat down and fixed her hair.

"No problem. Anyway, it's been a week or two now. How's everything been, Alice?" Ace asked Alice in a way as if nothing ever happened.

"I'm feeling really great, thank you." A waitress came over and served a cup of coffee and a glass of orange juice. "You know what Eliza's teacher told me? She said that Eliza might have a chance to skip grades because she's so smart. Can't wait until the end of the year!"

"Really? I never really knew that. So, why did you call me here?"

"Oh, I almost forgot. Ace, I'll be going somewhere for a couple of days, maybe a week, and I need someone to take care of Eliza. Joe and Chan don't always come over, and Jake is unpredictable since he's still single and roaming all around. Can you come back for a few days?"

Ace was having trouble answering this question. "Well, I guess I could come back for a few days. When do you need me to come over?"

"I'm leaving tomorrow, so you could come tomorrow morning. Do you mind?"

"No, not at all. I'll be on time at your house." Ace _still_ felt uneasy.

"Really? Oh, thank you! Maybe you'd want to buy something for Eliza." Alice finished her orange juice and left some money on the table. "Here's enough to pay for the coffee and orange juice. Got to go!" Alice took her bag and left the cafe.

_She's still the type that takes responsibility for everything,_ Ace sighed. He finished his coffee, took Alice's money, and paid the bill.

Turns out that Alice left early on Sunday morning, so she didn't see Ace arrive at her house. Unfortunately, Ace wasn't the only one that came back.

"Wow, like, Alice-nee is _so_ irresponsible." Fabia criticized. "Not only is she leaving Eliza with you, but she also left early. What is she thinking?"

"Fabia, for the last time, please be quiet. I'm sure that Eliza knows I'm coming, but maybe not about you." Ace set his luggage down by the dinner table.

"Hold it. Where ever you go, I'm going, too. And vice versa." Fabia was holding Ace's arm really tightly. "Look, it's Eliza. Over here!" Eliza looked down from the stairs and ran down.

"Daddy! You're back!" She hugged her father warmly. "Daddy, I miss you. How long will you by staying?

"Until your mother comes back. Eliza, guess who else came with me? It's Fabia-nee." Ace stepped aside so that Eliza could see Fabia.

"Oh. Hi Fabia-nee." Eliza saw that Ace was carrying a gift bag. "Daddy, what's that?"

"Oh, this?" Ace opened the gift bag. "It's a new doll. Fabia-nee and I picked it out for you. Do you like it?" It was a porcelain doll in a black lace dress with white fringe accents and silver-blond hair.

"That's nice. Daddy, you want to see my newest jump rope trick? I can alternate between regular and crisscross." Eliza dragged Ace outside to the backyard and began jumping.

"Eliza, you are smart. Do you know how to jump backwards?" Ace was so busy teaching Eliza how to jump backwards that he totally ignored Fabia.

_Alice, Alice, Alice._ Fabia mentally yelled to herself. _Ace may be on my side, but I'll get Eliza eventually._ She took the luggage upstairs to the small library room.

That night at Shun's house, Alice listened carefully as her instructor told her what needed to happen.

"As a part of Operation Steal Ace Back, you're going to have to renew yourself." Shun ordered. "Tonight, you'll be just staying in the guest room. It's way too late to continue the rest of the plan."

"Yes, sir. I promise to get a good night's sleep in preparation for tomorrow." Alice gathered her stuff as she thought about what Shun had in mind for this operation.


	4. Maiden Etiquette

Shun drove into a parking lot of a very expensive shopping mall and parked in the VIP space. He took the keys out of his car and stepped out. Alice stepped out as well and looked at the huge building.

"Just go in the entrance." Shun locked the car and led Alice into the mall. It was very luxurious and high-classed. "Feel free to look for clothes that you like.

"Amazing...wait, are we going to be shopping here?" Shun nodded to Alice's question. The first thing Alice saw was the row of blouses on the right wall. "Oh. These are so pretty."

"It's not about being pretty, Alice. It's about looking more modern and decent. Also, anything you choose has to go through my inspections first."

"Inspections? I doubt that you'd have a fashion sense, but I trust you." Alice first chose an ivory pin tuck blouse with frilly edges. "Is this going to work?"

"For a porcelain doll commercial, yeah." Alice put the blouse away and chose something else.

"How about this?" Alice held a maroon blouse with bell sleeves that eventually narrowed down. "This looks decent."

"But not so convenient." Shun chose something from the rack. It was a white short-sleeved blouse. This one had a high collar that didn't fold down and perfectly flat and straight edges everywhere. The buttons were made of shiny rhinestones.

"Oh my gosh, I am _not_ buying this! Look at the price tag!" Alice and Shun had a long argument about how it's best to spend more money once in a while. Eventually, Alice gave up, and _she_ had to pay for the blouse and a few other pieces of clothing. Alice was still complaining when they got home.

"Look, even _I_ think that you look ugly and outdated in those housewife clothes. I'm not a bit surprised that I had to help you pick out clothing." Shun opened the front door and let themselves in. "Guess what's next?"

"I'm not going to guess anything if I'm going to pay for it." Alice complained.

"Well, you don't, because all the high heels, sandals, and flip flops that you'll be wearing all belong to my mom."

"Your _mom_?" Alice was surprised to hear that. She held a pair of sandals in her hands. "This is almost the same size as me, but you don't really expect me to wear them, do you?"

"Why don't you start with a pair of three centimeter low heels?" Shun picked up a pair of olive green open-toe low heels. "Put them on."

Alice put them on with struggle at first but it soon fit her feet. She stood up and put her hands out for balance. "Like this?" Alice walked in a wobbly posture.

"There you go. Just make sure you don't-" It was too late. Alice already fell onto the ground.

"Ow!" Alice wasn't used to heels, for she wore flats her entire life. "Kazami-san, I need help."

"Get up yourself." Shun was met with Alice glaring at him. "Don't look at me like that. You have to rely on yourself from now on, not like when you always depended on Ace." Despite Shun's "harsh" words, it was the truth.

"You're right. I've been dependent on Ace too long. Now he's not with me. What's next?" Alice got up slowly.

"Put this book on your head." Shun rested an average hardcover novel on Alice's head. "Walk in a straight line _with_ your heels on. Stand tall." Shun had to adjust Alice's back so that she was in the right posture. "Now walk."

Alice walked slowly, for she was wearing heels, had a book on her head, and needed to maintain her posture. _Come on, Alice. You can do it. This is all for getting Ace back..._

Couple of days later, Shun and Marina came back with cardboard boxes full of books, magazines, etc. She laid the box down loudly, attracting Alice's attention. "What's all this?"

"Just a bunch of literature. Here's your new task. Read at least three books every day and do a written and oral report on them."

Alice's jaw nearly fell off. "_Three?_ I can't read that much in a day. I won't even have time to write or prepare for what to say. Besides, I don't even like these kind of stories."

"I'm pretty sure Shun just wants to read these books so you could be exposed to the outside world. Most of these books are on life events." Marina picked up one of the books. "Look, it's the play script version of _Romeo__ and __Juliet_."

"Really? Then that's what you'll be reading today." Shun took the book and handed it to Alice. "Read all of it, from the side notes all the way to the entire Act 5. This time, do written and oral reports on every act, so you have ten reports total. Good luck." Shun left along with Marina, and Alice was stuck with the huge cardboard box of books.

That night, Alice was still writing reports when Shun called her to stop. "Alice, it's dinner time. Please wear that evening outfit you bought the other day." Alice groaned as she changed into her evening gown.

"So what are we doing now?" Alice saw that the table had been set up with high-class silverware. "What is this?!"

"Time for table manners." Shun poured some non-alcohol apple cider into his glass and Alice's. "Pretty sure you know to put that piece of cloth on your lap to avoid food stains." Alice placed hers on her lap. "Good. Now sit up in a proper posture."

"Um, Kazami-san, why are we doing this?" Alice asked as she adjusted her seat. "Like, how is this related to getting Ace back?"

"Don't ask. Now, it's important to remember how the silverware is placed. Knife and wine glass on left side, fork on right." Suddenly, Shun tossed something on the ground while Alice was cutting a piece of steak. Her first instinct, of course, was to panic.

"Alice, if you're going to overreact like that, then we might as well give up." Shun took an awfully deep breath. Alice seemed pretty disappointed.

"Sorry, Kazami-san. I'll try not to overreact at all." Alice took a deep breath, and they continued with the "lesson."

An hour or two later, Shun took a shower and was almost finished dressed when he heard a _lot_ of thumping noises in his house. _My god, what time is it?! It's freaking late at night already._ He went into the living room and stepped back. In front of him was Alice, with not one but three books on her head. She was also wearing a pair of eight centimeter stiletto heels. Shun watched Alice walk from one side of the living room to the other, and it had to be the longer side.

"Balance, balance, balance..." Alice missed a step and fell down. Shun wanted to help her, but Alice was already up. "Stupid floorboards. Looks like I have to feel the floor with my feet as well." She gathered the fallen books and put them back on her head.

Shun looked to the side to see the coffee table, where Alice had arranged her reports. _Looks like this is going to be a successful plan._ Suddenly, Alice took her cell phone and dialed Chan's number.

"Alice! How are you doing? I really miss you!" Chan answered.

"I'm fine, thank you. Call the entire family minus Eliza but plus Fabia over at the cafe I told you about. I have a surprise."


	5. Makeshift Date

"Really? You know, I always thought that the medical department should be in charge of that, but-" Shiori looked at her diamond watch. "Oh dear. I really must go to that auction that I was supposed to help out at."

"It's okay, Shiori-san. I know that you're pretty busy. It was my pleasure to have you over for lunch today. Good luck with the auction. Take your of your back." Alice greeted. Shiori waved good bye and drove off in her car. "So, how successful was that?"

"Very successful, actually. She didn't even know that we were just acting." Shun looked at the table. "Uh, last time, I helped you with the dishes. This time, it's your turn to clean up my table." Alice sighed as she took the plates. "By the way, how are Chan and the others doing?"

"Well, we should really leave after I put the pates in the sink. Do you mind?"

"Not at all. You can wash them when we come back."

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"How long do we have to wait? Where's Chan, anyway?" Ace was getting impatient, for sitting at a table for almost an hour wasn't fun.

"Uh, she should be here right around now. Probably powdering her nose." Joe lied. _Come on, Chan. Hurry up!_ "Oh look, there she is! Chan, this table!" Chan saw Joe wave his hand and ran over there.

"I'm sorry for making you all wait." Chan apologized sarcastically. "It's just that I happened to meet up with my boss's new _fiancée_ or something. He made it sound really intriguing. Not to mention Alice's new _friend_." Jake showed no response to Chan's words, but Joe, Ace, and Fabia were suspicious.

"Well, it _is_ about time for your boss to get married. Who's Alice new friend?"

"I don't know! She said that he was at the restroom or-"

"_H__e__?!_" This time everyone, including Jake, exclaimed. They stared at Chan in shock, but Chan looked at them like there was nothing surprising about this.

"I don't know! Now, where's the menu-" Suddenly, something caught Chan's eye. "Alice?" Everyone looked in the direction Chan was looking in. Alice had the most beautiful evening dress on, even though it wasn't evening. Alice also let her hair down and curled it instead of tying it up in a bun.

"Chan? What a coincidence! Oh, Jake and Joe are here, too." Alice smiled. Chan, Jake, and Joe were focused on Alice, but Ace and Fabia were focused on the person _holding_ her arm. "Hi Ace. Hi Fabia."

"Hi Alice. Long time no see." Ace faced Shun. "Hello there, Kazami-san."

Fabia trembled a little. "Hi Alice-nee." For some reason, Fabia was more focused on Shun than Alice.

"We were just on our way to our table. I hope we're not bothering you." Alice winked at Chan, who responded back.

"Oh no, not at all. Since we're all here, why don't we all just sit together?" She pulled two chairs up to their the table. "One big family. My treat."

Shun looked at Alice, who nodded. "Thanks for letting us sit with you all. It's been a long time since I spent time with a lot of people during any meal of the day. Right, Alice-chan?" Everyone except Chan gasped as Shun's words.

"I know, right? Remember when your mother came over to lunch the other day? Oh, I'll always treasure that moment. Here's that bracelet that she gave me." Alice lifted her left hand up and showed the sapphire bracelet to everyone. "So, let's have a look at the menu." Alice placed the cloth on her lap, which shocked everyone.

"How about this?" Shun pointed to an item on the menu. Everyone took a menu anyway so that it wouldn't look like that Shun and Alice were the only ones choosing what to eat.

After everyone were finished looking through the menus, the waitress came over to pick up the menus. "Thank you. What would you like to drink today?"

"_Shun_," Alice called him by his first name. "How about if we had some Mateus Rosé Tempranillo today? A temporary alternative for tea."

"Anything you're having, I'll have, too, _dear._" Their acting was so real to the fact that it, obviously, disgusted Fabia and made Ace a little jealous.

During lunch break, Ace pulled Joe over. "Joe, just exactly what happened to Alice? How could she date this guy? He's not her type?"

"I don't know! But still, if you hadn't left her, she probably might not be as happy as right now. Just let her live her life." Joe lied and went back inside

Meanwhile, as Shun came out of the restroom, he was met with Fabia, who didn't seem to happy. "Shun, just exactly what do you want with Alice-nee? How could you date someone who's divorced and has a young child?"

"At least it's better than dating you back in high school. Besides, isn't _your_ boyfriend divorced and taking care of a young child as well?" Shun left, leaving Fabia speechless.

When lunch was over, the waitress handed Chan the bill. "Well, I, uh..."

"I'll pay it then." Shun offered, knowing that it was a very expensive meal.

"No, _I'll_ pay. Most of these people are apart of my family." Alice put her hand on Shun's and took the bill. "Waitress. Here's my credit card." Alice took out a card saying _Platinum Membership_ on it.

Everyone else except for Chan stared

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"It's so nice to be home again." Alice carried her stuff back into her house. "Oh dear." She saw that her house was a huge mess and invaded with Fabia's belongings. "Isn't this nice?" Behind her, Chan and Joe also came in.

"Oh god!" Joe exclaimed. "It wasn't that messy when we were here couple of days ago. Anyway, Chan, I think I forgot to turn the stove off."

"What?" Chan sighed. "Sorry, Alice. We have to go now. See you next time!" Alice waved them good bye and closed the door.

"Well, everyone left. Might as well prepare dinner." She got out some leftovers from a few days before and reheated them. By the time Alice finished cooking, Jake came in.

"Hey, Alice. I'm just bringing Eliza back from her friend's house. Got to go!" Jake closed the door, and Eliza ran over to hug her mom.

"Mommy! I miss you a lot!" Eliza said. "Are you making dinner?"

"Mm-hm. Why don't you go change first? Must've had a tiring day." Alice went over to set the table when suddenly, Ace and Fabia came in. "Ace, just in time. We were about to eat dinner. Come on.

"Sure, Alice. Looking forward to you-" Ace was interrupted by Fabia glaring at him.

"Sorry, Alice-nee, but we're eating baguettes and wine, not your dinner. Come on, Ace. Set the table and get wine glasses." Ace was reluctant to move, but Alice already grabbed the wine glasses.

"Here, Fabia. Take the wine glass." Alice handed one of them to Fabia.

"Thanks, Alice-" Alice dropped it just as Fabia was going to get it. "Uh..."

"Oh my. My hands are slippery from washing dishes. Do you still want to the other wine glass?" Alice asked sarcastically with a fake smile.

Fabia was furious. Alice was being very disrespectful to her. "Who cares about your wine glasses? Come on, Ace. We're eating outside!" She dragged Ace out the door and slammed it.

_You started the problem, so you solve it._ Alice took the plates of food on the countertop to the dinner table. "Eliza, time for dinner!"

When dinner was over, Alice read a bedtime story to Eliza before she left. "Okay, time for bed, sweetie. Sweet dreams." She kissed Eliza on the forehead and left.


	6. Should I Care?

Fabia woke up that morning in the library room to see that the Photoshop-ed picture of her, Eliza, and Ace was nowhere to be seen.

"Ace! Tell me where you hid the picture!" Fabia's loud voice was definitely _not_ a tune for sore ears.

"Listen, Fabia." Ace took a sip of his coffee. "Alice happened to see that yesterday when she was getting a book and told me about it, so I took it away. I don't want to impact her anymore."

"Impact her? So you're trying to do the opposite by impacting me!" Fabia was on one of her temper tantrums _again__ and _went back upstairs.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, but for some reason, Eliza got her hair stuck on the brush." Alice was still pulling strand of hair from the brush into the trash can. "Eliza, take the brush back. I need to make breakfast." Alice cracked a couple of eggs into a bowl, stirred it all, and poured the mixture onto the pan. Apparently, she was using a new technique to cook eggs that Ace didn't recognize.

"What are you making? I've never seen you make eggs like that." Ace questioned. "I like the scrambled eggs that you used to make."

Alice just smiled. "Well, it's always great to try something new, right? Can you hand me a plate?" Ace took a plate from the rack and handed it to Alice, who scooped the huge piece of egg on it. "A knife, please."

Ace handed her a knife. Alice carefully cut the huge piece of egg the way you cut a pie. "Try it. When you're done, just put the plates in the plates in the sink. I already made appointments with someone to eat breakfast somewhere." Alice took her purse and left.

It turned out that Alice was having breakfast with Shun. After that, they took a walk in the park. The entire discussion topic was about the plan. Both people had different opinions of the same result.

"I think this is getting a little overboard, Kazami-san. Like, what if something happens? Like an accident or something. Fabia was blowing our ears off already this morning."

"It's not like her voice will kill you or anything. Anyway, just stay things that will tick her off. You did say that you dropped the wine glass last night. That counts."

"Well, Eliza told me that ever since Ace came back with Fabia, she feels so left out. Ace is more focused on Fabia than Eliza. That's just wrong."

"Okay, maybe I didn't fully think about Eliza, but I have a plan. A plan that you'll disagree with immediately."

"What is it?"

"It was supposed to be using Eliza to get Ace back, but I know you'd say no."

"Well, it couldn't hurt for Eliza and Ace to have some father-daughter time."

"That's an exception. By the way, Marucho told me that a manager from some company wants to talk to me about a business dealing. You want to come?"

"I'd love to! Maybe seeing that I'm out for lunch, Ace will stay with Eliza, but so will Fabia." Alice's mind was so confused.

"Don't worry. If Fabia was to hurt Eliza, I bet that Ace won't forgive her. Why don't you go home and change first. There's also another auction tonight in which my mother is in charge of. You want to go to that, too? There's a buffet."

"Buffet? I guess I could go. I'll go back now. Call you later."

"Okay, then. See you." Shun walked Alice back to her car, and she drove back home. However, it wasn't really a pretty sight.

"Oh. Alice-nee's back." Fabia glared. Alice went upstairs, changed, and came back down. "Where are you going? On your date again?"

"Not really. Marucho-san and the others have a meeting with someone today. They want to hear my opinion on a new project. Take of Ace for me. He's going to be really tired from watching over Eliza for the entire day." Alice smiled and left.

"Eh, Fabia. Wasn't Alice just here?" Ace came inside from the backyard with a jump rope in his hands.

"She left. Said something about lunch with some employees or something." Fabia smirked. "Ace, maybe we should go out for lunch as well. It's such a nice day."

"First breakfast, then lunch. That's not like the Alice we know. Sorry, Fabia, but I can't leave Eliza alone. She's not old enough to stay by herself yet."

"What about Chan and Joe?"

"They weren't home when I called."

"How about Jake?"

"He's never reliable when it comes to staying at home. Sorry, Fabia, but we really can't go anywhere for long."

That night, Alice requested that she used the shower first and was met with no complaints, for Ace and Fabia were so busy being together. _Perfect. Kazami-san's idea of reverse psychology is really working. Now I have to wait until Fabia runs out of patience._

Alice went back to her room to choose a dress to wear. _So many dresses. Which one should I wear?_ She finally chose the violet strapless dress with the rhinestones at the side slits. After fixing her hair and putting on all sorts of jewelry, Alice finally put on the dress, with some difficulty that is. Ace happened to come by.

"Need help? Obviously, you can't put the zipper fully up that way." True, Alice was trying to pull the zipper up, and her arms were forced into a very uncomfortable position. Ace pulled it up for her and buttoned the opening.

"Thanks, Ace." Alice sat back down to put on mascara and eye shadow. "Ace, does lavender eye shadow look better, or does the magenta one?" Ace didn't respond immediately.

"Alice...you've changed. You're not like this. You never wore make up, jewelry, high heels, or clothes that exposed a lot of your skin. What happened? I like the original you better."

Alice stopped and looked up at Ace. "Are you telling me this because it's the truth, or it's just your opinions? Either way, should I care about what you think?" Alice stood up to put on her heels but saw a shadow outside. She immediately pretended to fall down so that Ace will catch her. "Oh, thanks a lot, Ace. Sorry that I-" Fabia suddenly barged in next to Ace.

"Ace, what are you doing?! I thought you were just using the restroom." Fabia glared at Alice, who just looked back.

"Well, I was, but then Alice needed help-" Fabia cut Ace off.

"Alice-nee, Ace is already my boyfriend. There's no use getting him back. You're dating Shun just to make Ace jealous. It's all fake." Ace looked at Fabia, who looked at the dressing table full of cosmetics. "Alice-nee, you're not going to look any better that way. Make up and everything only makes you older, not younger." Ace was going to scold Fabia when Alice spoke.

"It's does? Maybe I should use peach colored eye shadow then. But Fabia, if make-up makes me older, then wouldn't your jealousy make you uglier?" Fabia was so shocked that she ran out of the room in fury. "Aren't you going to follow her?"

Ace glared at Alice and went after Fabia.


	7. Imperfection

"Give me my coffee back!"

"That was my donut!"

"Will you just give me that coffee filter?"

"I have sprinkles on my blouse!"

This was more than a typical day at Melody Toyota Showroom. However, it was like rush hour in the mini-cafeteria. People were fighting over coffee and donuts. Not to mention coffee filters.

Alice sat at the counter by herself thinking about recent events. _Maybe I shouldn't have been so mean to them. If I treat Fabia like this, then only I feel happy. Ace will just cover for her__ and __glare at me._ She was lost in her own world of thoughts that she didn't realize that the coffee line was already gone.

"Alice? Earth to Alice?" Marina came over and waved her hand in front of Alice, who still stared at her empty cup. "Shun! Alice isn't working!"

Shun, however, was busy talking to Marucho about some plan that he didn't hear her. "Shun!" Marina cut between Shun and Marucho. "Would you please look at Alice? She's been like that since this morning!"

"Say what? Yeah, I'm pretty sure that she just needs to take a break. Let her relax. Give her two cups-no, _three_ cups of coffee. One donut of each flavor, too." Shun went back to talking with Marucho, leaving everyone who heard what Shun said in shock.

"Did you just say what I thought you'd never say?" Marina looked at Shun with shock. "Nothing, nothing. You can go back to talking with Marucho. I'll just check the computers for something." She made a couple of quick glances and left. _What is wrong with you today?_

Later, everyone was requested to turn in their monthly report on how things are doing at each station. The commercials team turned their papers in first, just like always. Then came Alice coming in to turn in her report for the number of cars sold in day.

Shun, being a "perfectionist" when it comes to this, looked through each set of reports meticulously. Marina walked in to turn in her papers. She eyed the stacks of reports on the table and felt uneasy.

"Shun, what's with all these stacks of reports? I thought that the others might sent their report via email." Marina handed her report in to Shun. Then she focused on a specific set of reports. "Did you read this set of reports yet?"

"My computer is being fixed by the technician, so I can't really _check_ my email. and yeah, I read those. What's wrong with them?"

"They're out of order." Marina took the stack and showed Shun the page corners. "You like the dates on the top sheet to be the beginning of the month and the last sheet to be the end of the month. Alice has it backwards."

"Eh, no worries. At least they're in some kind of chronological order. I can read backwards." Marina gasped at what Shun said and left.

Right before lunch, Shun came in Marucho's office with a binder and a paper in it. "Marucho, I need you to initial here and there and sign here. Alice already filled out the rest of the paper." He laid the binder on Marucho's desk.

"Oh, thank you, Shun. This must be the-" Marucho looked at the paper and stopped. "Shun, why are all these different colors? How come nobody realized it?"

"Wait, what?" Shun looked at the paper and saw that Alice had filled a part of the paper with blue in and the other part with black. Not to mention that Alice's signature was in red ink. "Well, I don't what to do about that, but why don't you just sign this?" Marucho had no choice but to ignore the "ink issue" and sign it anyway.

As Shun walked back into his office, he kept thinking about what happened today. _First I let Alice doze off, then I let her arrange the report papers that way,__ and __now I'm actually letting her fill out papers like it's a coloring book?_ Shun wanted to slam his head so hard somewhere and saw Alice in the cafeteria. "Hey, Alice. Can I talk to you for a while?"

Alice stopped pouring coffee into her cup and faced him. "Sure, Kazami-san. What happened?"

_Come on, Shun. T__hink!_ Shun had no idea on what to talk about right now, and Alice was getting impatient. "Well, I..."

"Actually I have something to tell you." Alice interrupted. "I'm sorry that I was daydreaming this morning. Earlier, Marina told me about my out-of-order report, and Marucho told me about the multicolor contract. I'm really sorry. I don't how that happened."

"Maybe you were daydreaming too much." Shun replied abruptly. _Right,__ and __you're going to make Alice a lot more irritated._ "Take your time, Alice. Even though you're busy with the 'plan' and other stuff, you should still pay attention at work." _Dang it! She's going to yell back._

"You're right. I can't let personal stuff get in the way. Thanks for telling me that, Kazami-san. Bye!" After Alice left, Shun took his cell phone and called Fabia to come over for some reason.

Soon, Fabia came over and met with Shun in his meeting room. Shun started the conversation with indirect details but eventually got to the point.. "Fabia, you know this isn't working. When are you going to give up on Ace? It's obvious that Alice won't give up."

"Thanks to you. First you dump me, and then you use her to get me back?" Fabia was changing the subject. "What do you want?"

"First of all, I didn't dump you. Second of all, you need a psychologist." Suddenly, Chan came in from nowhere with a huge broom in her hands.

"Aha! I finally found that pack rat! Get the heck out of here!" Chan hit the area around where Fabia sat with the broom.

"You're all like this. I know how to leave, you know." Fabia took her bag and left while Chan posed victoriously.

"Back to work, Chan." Shun and Chan left the meeting room.

When Shun went home that night, Shiori had come over for dinner. During the entire meal, Shun was focused on other things than eating.

"Shun dear, are you alright? You seem a little down." Shiori noticed. "Is something bothering you?"

"Mother, I don't know to say it, but there is something wrong with me. Like, if you knew about what happened today at work, you'd fire me already."

"Oh dear. Shun, I don't think I have the authority to fire you. You know what I think is your 'problem' right now? It seems like that you're in love, and I think I know who it is. Just admit it."

Shun had enough. "Okay, I get it! I. Love. Alice. Gehabich! I can't help it, but she still loves Ace, though. What do I do now? I can only get close to her during our plan-"

"Oh...I get it." Shiori realized that Shun blew his cover. "So _that's _why you two invited me over for lunch. It was just practice. Well, guess what?" Shiori grabbed her son by his collar and had a sly expression on her face. "If she still loves Ace no matter what, then you should _make_ her forget her ex and come to your side."

After all these years of seeing her live in silence from divorcing, Shun witness his mom's "evil" side for the first time ever since.


	8. Hurt and Unhurt Feelings

Shun closed the door of his office and looked into the secret mirror that was installed there and adjusted his tie. _Okay, Shun. It's time for drastic measures. Just make sure it's legal, okay?_ He took a deep breath and went outside.

In the showroom, everything was just fine. Customers came in to buy cars. Shun saw Alice help a family out by taking the care on a test drive, which made him remember the horrible car accident that Alice had. "Marina, go take Alice's place. I don't want her to get hurt."

"Excuse me?" Marina questioned. Shun realized that Marina was taking his idea the wrong way.

"I mean, I don't want another accident happening, that's all." Marina was still looking at Shun.

"Well, what if I get into an accident?"

"Don't say that! Just go!" Shun had to push his cousin all the way to Alice and explained everything. _I am freaking tired..._

Later during lunch, Shun gave people permission eat lunch wherever they want but away from the showroom, so a lot of employees went to some sushi bar down the street and didn't come back until lunch break was over. Throughout the entire lunch break, Alice ate by herself, until Shun came over and took her to the balcony.

"So are Ace and Fabia still living in your house?" Shun asked. It was a very awkward question, but it was still a crucial part of the plan.

"Don't ask. I've been able to irritate and annoy Fabia these days, but then again, Ace supports her. I don't think this will work."

"Don't be so pessimistic. Remember, you want Eliza to be with her father, right? Then work hard for it."

"Thank you, Kazami-san. I wish I could, but at the same time, I don't want Eliza to know about these things. I want her to learn to love a person and not hate them. I also don't want her fellow classmates to tease her. You'll understand when you have kids."

Shun blushed heavily. "Actually, I don't have to have kids to understand that because I used to be in the same condition that Eliza is in now. Only, my father never came back after he left. Also, out of all the monthly reports I read, yours was the most detailed, clear, and chronological. You'll be getting the highest raise."

"Really? You're not joking, are you? I even admit that I put the papers backwards." Alice fidgeted.

"No, I'm not. You can see the increase on your pay check by the end of this month. I heard that Eliza is almost graduating from kindergarten. Might want to get her something special for her first year of school."

"Oh, thank goodness. And yes, Eliza is almost graduating." Alice looked at the clock. "Oh dear. A client called earlier and said that she was going to meet me at the repair center in ten minutes. Bye, Kazami-san." Alice threw away her trash and left to the building next door.

_Don't worry, Alice. I won't let you repeat the life that my mother lived a long time ago._ Shun got up and went back to the showroom.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Couple of days later, Shun told Alice that he'd meet her in front of her house and take her to some convention. "Alice! Are you ready yet?!" Shun decided that it'd be best to get out of the car and call on her. The door opened, but it was Chan and Joe

"Ah! Kazami-san, what an honor to see you come directly to our house." Chan welcomed. "Feel free to come in and stay for a while.

"Sorry, Chan, but I was just going to take Alice to a convention that my mother is holding. Is she done ye-" Alice suddenly appeared at the door wearing another one of those fancy dresses.

"Sorry that I had to keep you waiting. I had a hard time deciding which earrings to wear. Is this alright?" Alice wore a pair of diamond drop earrings. "I heard that people from all over the world are coming."

"You look pretty in anything, Alice. Come on. This convention will last until nine o'clock or something." The two of them got on Shun's convertible and drove off. From up in the balcony, Ace looked down at the car with mixed emotions. Fabia came and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Alice...her and her new life. If only I could give her more in order to repay her for what I did..." Ace was going to go back when Fabia blocked him.

"Are you regretting that you divorced Alice? Are you forgetting why you divorced her in the first place?" Fabia's eyes were full of anger.

"Look, Fabia. We may be divorced, but I'm still Eliza's father. I should put effort into taking care of her, too. If only you had kids or so, you'd understand how I feel. Now, please excuse me. You're getting really annoying these days. I'm trying to find a new job, you know." Ace pushed Fabia over and walked out.

"Alice, Alice, Alice! Why do you always get everything? Ace still cares for you, but you're dating my ex-boyfriend. Why do you get everything and I lose everything?!" Fabia fell down on the ground in tears.

When the convention was over, Shun took Alice back to her house, but he parked around the park, a few blocks away from her house. "Alice, can I tell you something?"

"Sure, Kazami-san. What is it?"

"First of all, you don't have to be polite and call me Kazami-san all the time. Just call me Shun."

"S-Shun? That feels kind of awkward. Like, if I call you that while carrying out our plan, then it sounds better. But we're in reality, we're employer and employee, so-"

"Just call me Shun." he insisted. "Remember what I said about not being pessimistic? Well, what if Ace _doesn't_ come back? How are you going to live later on?"

"Well, if Ace really doesn't come back, then I guess I have no choice. Although it was very courageous of him to divorce. Ten years have passed, and it only seemed like yesterday that we married. Or divorced."

"And what about Eliza? What will she do if Ace never comes back?"

"I don't know. It's a very huge impact, that's all I know. She won't understand any of this now, but she'll have to know the truth eventually."

_That's just like me when I found out my father left us. Only, I knew a lot already__ and __wasn't so naive._ "True, but she's going to ask you a lot about Ace. How will you explain this to her?"

"I don't know yet. Why are you asking me all this? It's not like Ace _really_ is going to leave and never come back. What is-?"

"Because I love you."

"What?"

"Really, I do. I don't know how it happened, but throughout all the 'faking' that we did, it's actually real now."

"But..._Shun,_ I was married and divorced and-"

"Have a young child, still. I understand."

"You actually wouldn't mind all that?"

"Not at all. If Ace was to leave you forever, which I hope and kind of not hope, I'll be there for you."

"I know what you're trying to say, Shun, but the problem is that I don't really love you back. I'm still into Ace, you know."

Shun was prepared for this. "No harm done. I knew you'd say that. Just wanted to prepare you, that's all."

Alice realized that she might have hurt Shun's feelings. "Even though I don't have feelings for you, we can still be friends, right?" She stuck her hand out.

Shun immediately shook her hand. "Friends."


	9. My Own Road

Shun paced around the living room of his house as Shiori watched him move every time. Finally, it got to the point that she had enough and was tired of seeing him move so often.

"That's it. Shun, are you alright? I've been here watching you for the past hour or something, and you still haven't spoken a word to me. What happened yesterday? You came back from the convention all silent."

Shun still didn't respond to his mother. All he could do was just look out the window. Surprisingly, from the angle where he was standing, Shun could see Alice's house from here, right in the center. "Okay, Shun. I'm just going to assume that it has to do with Alice. Let me guess, she rejected you?"

"I can understand why she rejected me. It's just that Ace is so into Fabia now that he'd do anything to help her, so why bother be at Alice's side again? I don't want her to repeat the life that you lived, Mother." _But she's going to if I don't help her..._

"Oh well. So you confessed to her but got rejected. I hope you didn't make it too abrupt and sudden. Even so, maybe you should take a break from all this 'faking' and take a deep breath. Try staying away from civilization for a few days. That's what I told a client of mine."

_Away from civilization..._"That's it!" Shun went into his room and took a camping backpack out and looked for other stuff. "Thanks, Mother. I think this will actually help."

"I don't know what you're doing, but I guess it's worth doing. Just take of yourself, okay?" She hugged her son warmly. "Maybe you'll be able to get out of that box that you've always locked yourself in."

"Mother!" Shun was embarrassed by what she said, but the two of them laughed anyway.

That night, Shun was invited over to Alice's house for dinner again. Luckily, Ace and Fabia weren't here, and everyone else focused on Shun.

"So, _captain_, are we still going to carry out this plan?" Chan asked. Everyone else began eating dinner.

"I don't know. That would really depend on what you want to do. I'm just in charge here while you come up with the plans."

Joe spit his soup out. "Hey! I thought _you_ came up with the plans. What's the big deal?"

"I don't know, but I just realized something. I've been helping you guys a lot, but that's your family business, and I shouldn't have been involved in the first place."

"Yeah, but you _did _help us a lot. We couldn't have done most of this without you. Right, Alice?" Alice looked up at Jake's comment and nodded.

"You're right. If it wasn't for you, Kazami-san, then Ace would still have positive feeling for Fabia. Right now, he's sort of torn between those feelings."

"That's true. Well, this is a certainly a very delicious dinner at your residence. Too bad it'll be my last for a while." Everyone looked at Shun.

"Wait, what's that supposed to mean?" Joe asked. Apparently, Shun didn't want to respond.

"Sorry, but that's confidential. Maybe I'll tell you next time. Thanks for everything." Shun got up, took his stuff, and left.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"A new plan?" Marucho gasped. "Why, that's good news. We could really use a method of doing things now and then. What is it?"

"Here's the format. I don't know if you'll be able to fully understand it, but it's as clear as it can get." Shun handed a manila folder to Marucho, who opened it and looked through the papers.

"This is spectacular. We'll get a lot more money from this, I just know it! So when are we going to carry this out?"

Marina, who sat at the sofa opposite of them, cleared her throat. "So that's the good news. What's the bad news?"

"Good thing you asked. The bad news is that I won't be personally carrying this out. I'll leave it to the entire Melody Toyota staff and see what they can do."

"Say what?!" Marucho yelled so loud that the people outside could hear him. "You can't be serious. We really need your help on this. What will you be doing?"

"No need to worry about me, Marucho. I'll be gone for a few days. How about this? If you can successfully carry out this plan without my help, then maybe you guys could get a surprise..."

"But what exactly are you going to do?" Marina asked. Shun finally got to the point.

"Okay, I'll tell you. I'm going to be gone for at least a week or so. I really need to take a break from recent events, that's all. Not to mention trying to break out of the 'box' that I've been locking myself in." Shun checked his watch. "I really need to go now. Promised to meet someone."

"Okay, Shun. Take care!" Marucho and Marina waved him goodbye.

After he left, Shun went to that cafe that he'd always go to. Waiting for him at one of the tables was Alice. "Alice, over here."

"There you are." Alice greeted. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Something very important and crucial."

"What is it?"

"Let's just say that I'll be leaving for a week or two, away from civilization."

"Wait, are you leaving someone just because I sort of rejected you? Because if you really are-"

"Don't jump to conclusions. I'm only doing this in order to break out of that box that I've locked myself into ever since my mother divorced. I've always been trying to be a perfectionist so hard that I completely forgot about the true meaning of life. This is my own road that I'm taking, not other people's."

"So you're not mad at me?"

"I was never mad at you. I knew you'd say that to me."

"So why did you confess anyway even though I don't like you back?"

"Find out yourself. All I'll tell you that I'll be camping in the woods for these few days. Trying to be closer to nature and exploring the wild."

"Are you still going to communicate with us?"

"Sure I will, only not through technology."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I'll send a journal entry of my day back to the newspaper company every day for them to publish it. _Then_ you'll understand."

"But what if it doesn't make it here?"

"For the sky's sake, why are you so pessimistic? Sometimes, you have to learn to trust others even after the worst accident."

"You're right." Alice stuck her hand out. "We're still friends, right?"

Like the last time, Shun immediately shook her hand. "Friends." Suddenly, Chan, Joe, and Jake appeared at the entrance.

"Oh! I forgot to tell them to come earlier. Looks like you'll have to repeat everything." Alice realized.

"What the heck is wrong with you all and keeping track of time?!" Shun sighed and smiled as the trio sat down at their table.


	10. Motherly Pep Talk

"Bye Kazami-san! Take care of yourself in the wilderness!" Alice, Chan, Joe, Jake, Marucho, and Marina all waved him goodbye. The taxi drove off and was soon out of sight.

"Well, I never thought that he really meant it when he left." Marucho was actually crying. "The new plan will not be carried out properly if he isn't here!" He and Marina got back on her car.

"If any of you need a ride, just say so. I'm pretty unoccupied here." Marina offered. Alice and Chan got on, but Joe and Jake went their ways. Things were going to be very different now that Shun was gone.

Back at Alice's house, Fabia was packing all her stuff like crazy. _If you want to be with Alice so much, Ace, then I might as well leave._ Ace happened to come upstairs and saw the mess.

"Fabia, what are you doing? You can't leave!" Ace unpacked all her stuff.

"Leaving, obviously. If you miss Alice _so_ much, then stay with her! I'll leave! Nobody in this world will ever fully love me." She put her stuff back and carried the suitcase downstairs.

"Well, at least stop to read this letter first. I don't know what it is, but just take it." Fabia snatched the envelope out of his hands and opened it up. It was a handwritten letter from Shun to her.

_Fabia,_

_I think it's about time that you should really see a psychologist. I've already schedule__d__ an appointment. Meet her at the cafe tomorrow morning._

_KS_

"That's all you have to say?!" Fabia immediately ripped up the letter and tossed it around the floor. Suddenly, she was picking up the papers again in her hands. _At least he did something._ "Fine, I won't leave _yet_. I still have some important things to do."

Meanwhile, Shiori was also reading a letter sent to her from her son. The information was the same: meet Fabia at the cafe tomorrow morning.

_Mother__,_

_Before I left, I decided that it's about time that Fabia sees a doctor. I was hoping that you do go see her tomorrow morning at the cafe. She really needs help._

_Your son __Shun_

"I agree with you, Shun. It really _is_ about time that we tell Fabia the truth."

Back at the Gehabich residence, the paperboy just delivered Alice her newspaper. As promised, on the first page showed a picture of Shun by some mushrooms and a journal entry.

_Day __One__: I've officially gotten out of the city __and __am now in the wilderness. Who knew that the wild is as loud __and __active as the city? Not me. In the morning, you might hear birds chirping __and __rabbits running, but there's more hunting done at night that day. I wish I could stay up all night just to see them catch food, but humans aren't nocturnal. It's amazing how we are active in the light but can still see in the dark. One reason why you don't want to see an animal face to face at dark. If a close friend of mine was here, they'd probably yell at me for staying up late at night._

After reading the back side to make sure it was nothing important, Alice took a pair of scissors and cut the article out. She put it on a notebook page and glued it down. _Great start so far, Shun. Just don't wear yourself out..._

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"Excuse me. Are you the psychologist that Shun said would help me?" Fabia didn't even bother think if the woman knew Shun's first name.

"Yes and no. I _am_ a psychologist but also Shun's mother." That immediately shocked Fabia.

"No offense, but I really don't like psychologists. Especially psychologists related to cheaters." Fabia was going to leave, but Shiori pulled her by the arm.

"Fabia, why don't we go out for a walk somewhere? There's something I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

"Whether or not Shun loved you or not."

After another shocking phrase, Fabia decided to follow Shiori to a grass meadow where it was quiet and peaceful. "Isn't this nice weather? I love it here."

"Can't you just tell me whether he loved me or not?"

"Answer my questions first." Shiori insisted. "What kind of music do you like?"

"Fine then. I like Evanescence. You won't like it."

"Actually, _Shun_ wouldn't like it. Amy Lee is really talented, but every time I turn that music on, he says 'Mother, turn it off! It's like my father came back from the dead!' I have to turn it off. How about _your_ parents? What were they like?"

"Don't ask. My parents argued so much that they never cared for me. So I always do these random things to get attention."

"I see. If that's true, then I know why you always fail to keep a relationship going. What feeling did you have for or about Shun when you two dated back in high school? What do you think love is?"

"Simple. If you love someone, then you should be thinking of them at every second. They should do the same, too."

"But that would be very tiring. Do you know why Shun broke up with you in the first place? It-"

"_I_ broke up with him. He barely cares about me or my feelings."

"Okay then. Now, do you think that you're starting to _not_ love your current boyfriend Ace now?"

"I had great deal of hope in him, but he's just like Shun. Nobody ever loves me."

"Well, do you know that Ace and Shun have in common? They've both made you lose hope. Apparently, if you keep this going, then you're just going to be repeating your memory scars of the past. You'll never heal unless you-"

"What kind of a doctor are you?! You're only opening up scars and wounds of the past, not healing them!" Fabia backed away and sat down on a rock."

Shiori held Fabia warmly by the hands. "Your idea of love is to be together at all times and never leaving because you never got the love that every child should get when you were young. And I'll tell you, yes, Shun _did_ love you, but as a perfectionist, he won't be satisfied if he didn't get all that he wants. It's not that you don't care enough; it's that you cared too much. You should learn to love yourself before loving others, okay?"

_I can__'__t believe she__'__s actually right about this. _Fabia immediately burst into tears and hugged Shiori. "Thanks, Shiori-san. Now I understand everything. It was my fault. I tried to love someone even though I didn't love myself."

"Don't cry. I'm glad that you learned your lesson now."

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Back home, Fabia continued packing her stuff. Alice and Eliza were over at Chan's place. Ace came up again and asked, "Fabia, where are you going? I though you-"

Fabia looked at him. "I'm sorry, Ace, but I don't think we're fit for each other. I'm going back to America."


	11. Apologies

It's been a week since Shun left, and Alice kept every single journal entry that appeared in the newspapers.

_Day __Four__: I've happened to meet some new people out here. They're environmentalists who've come out here to observe wildlife __and__ check on the recent forest fire. I thought it'd be fun to join them, __and__ it was. Huge forests are the most dangerous fire hazards, __and__ we still haven't found out who might have thrown a cigarette or match down in the first place. Our overall conclusion was that the fire was spread my southeast wind. We can't tell if anything died in the fire, though. If that close friend of mine was here, they'd probably panic __and__ actually try to put out the fire themselves._

"Shun, you're being stereotypical of me..." Alice said to herself.

_Day __Seven__: I just witnessed a caterpillar's chrysalis hatch into a swallowtail butterfly __and__ got eaten by a bird immediately. Butterflies are rare in this part of the forest, but I always see moths hover around my lantern. It amazes me that one small change in the environment can lead to a catastrophe-__-__or a good thing. No wonder they call it a butterfly effect. That reminds me of how you let something happen in your will, yet you never expect the outcome of it all. That close friend of mine would be the type that yell at __and__ scold themselves for starting all this when it's not your fault._

"Hi Alice." Chan, Joe, and Jake came inside. "So, how's _Shun_ doing?"

"Chan! How dare you call your boss by his first name?" Alice yelled.

"Well, how come you get to call him by Shun when you were talking to yourself? What's going on?" Joe and Jake looked at Alice suspiciously.

"I didn't say 'Shun.' I said 'vacation.' Don't you think it's about time that we do some fun stuff? Like, with Fabia and Ace-"

"Right...and you happen to have a scrapbook full of Shun's journal entries. Is .that coincidental or what?" Joe added. Jake and Chan nodded in unison

"Come on, Alice. Just admit it. Maybe it's about time for you to move on with your life." Jake's was met with Alice's glare. "Or do what you want. It's none of my business."

"Get back to work." Alice put her stuff away and got the car keys.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"...and a loud applause for Alice Gehabich!" Marina announced. "Our Employee of the Month for June! As EOM, these are the special privileges that she'll get." Marucho took a small boxful of things.

He took out a gold-plated ceramic mug, a piece of paper, a plaque, and a metal pin. "Here's the Employee of the Month coffee mug, along with a Dinner for Two voucher at the Lobster Barrel. This plaque will go under your picture at the front hall with the other Employees of the Month. Finally, this pin allows you to park in that special parking lot for employees of the month. Congratulations!"

"Thanks you everyone. For those of you who didn't make it, I hope that you all work hard to get this title next time. Remember, the success of this company depends on all of us! Again, thanks everyone!" Alice accepted the box of prizes.

"Heh, wouldn't Shun be surprised and happy to hear about this news?" Chan whispered to Alice as she put the metal pin on Alice's shirt.

"Chan!" Alice realized that everyone heard her yell for no reason. "Do you mind? You're going to poke me if you keep poking the needle part of the pin around." Everyone laughed at Chan but soon quiet down. "Okay, time to pick up Eliza. We're out of work, right?"

"Well, yeah. You can't get out of work about five minutes early. We know you have a daughter to pick up." Marina replied. Alice left immediately to pick Eliza up and go back home.

"Eliza, what was the surprise that the you wanted to show me?" Alice asked as she set up the table.

"My teacher said that I was the top student in my class overall, and I'm able to skip a grade. Mommy, can I skip a grade?" Eliza replied.

"Skip grades? Oh my gosh, you had better be telling me the truth? Do you have your report card?!" Eliza took a piece of paper out. "You're right. We need to celebrate!" Chan got some apple cider, Joe got some cups, and Jake took some ice cream out.

"What a smart child you have, Alice. I wish I had children. Then I can celebrate every day." Chan glared at Joe, who simply replied with a, "What?"

"One more thing. We've officially kicked Fabia out of the house!" Jake declared. Everyone started eating dinner after a "Cheers!" with their glasses of apple cider.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

Tomorrow evening, Alice was unpacking her stuff from the weekend trip with Eliza, Chan, and the others today when somebody knocked on her door. "Who is it?" Alice opened the door, revealing Fabia at the front doorstep. "Fabia..."

"Alice-nee, can I come in? I just a have a few words." Alice let her in, and Fabia sat down at a chair. "I don't need water. Alice-nee, I just want to say that I'm sorry for everything."

"Slow down. What's going on?"

"Alice-nee, I'm _sorry_ for bringing all these unhappy events to your family. I've finally learned that I never really loved Ace in the first place. It was just obsession." Fabia was actually crying. "I'm leaving to America tonight and never coming back. Thanks for letting stay at your house for all this time. I know that if I'm going to leave anyways, why bother start this in the first place? Can you ever forgive me?"

"So sudden...at least you learned your lesson. Love comes from the heart, Fabia. It's different from obsession. If you're ever going to date someone else in America, just remember what I taught you. I accept your apology, but I'm not sure if can forgive you."

"Accepting my apology is enough. One more thing." Fabia took a small metallic lunch box out. "Remember this? You gave it to me before my first day of work. Here are the bandages for just in case if I got hurt or cut. There's the pack of cookies for me just in case if I get hungry before or after lunch. A small notepad to keep track of tasks. And finally, this little amulet that you gave me. I'm giving it back."

"Fabia...I don't know what to say. All I have for you is to take care of yourself in America. Goodbye."

"Thanks, Alice-nee." Fabia gave Alice a hug. "Thanks for everything. You know, you are a generous person after all. You slapped me only because you were mad at me."

"And I couldn't help but slap you because you looked and acted so innocent after doing all this. Have a great time in America. How's Ace?"

"Looking for a new job. I think it's way down in Kagoshima. Bye Alice-nee." Fabia hugged Alice one last time before she left the door.

"Bye, Fabia. Take care." Alice closed the door as she looked back at the little box on the table. _I hope you really did learn your lesson._

Later that night, Fabia took a taxi to the airport. As she got off the taxi and stepped on the pavement of the airport sidewalk, she looked back at the traffic one last time. _Bye __Alice-nee__. Bye Ace. Bye Japan._ Fabia moved on inside past the automatic doors carrying her suitcase.


	12. Moving On

It was now officially ten days from the day that Shun left. As Alice was reading this morning's paper that morning, she noticed a very important piece of information on Day Ten's journal entry.

" '...This is will be my last day of wilderness exploration. I really don't know what that close friend would want. Either have me come back or stay in the wilderness longer. Hoping to see you all again...' " Alice read. "He's coming back tomorrow! What now?" Alice paced around the kitchen frantically. "Whatever. It's not like today."

Now that Fabia was officially gone, Ace could peacefully find a job without having someone annoy him. His new job would be in Kagoshima, miles away from Odaiba. _I hope that Alice can take care of herself._ He shook hands with the manager of the company and left after their agreement.

At Senritsu Toyota, everyone was in pure shock. Marucho took the Daily Sales chart out for everyone to see. Apparently, out of every single day in the past, today had the most car sales. "Congratulations to everyone for working so hard!" he announced. "We finally broke the record that we broke before two years ago."

Yasuma came out with the Daily/Monthly/Yearly Sales Chart for two years ago. "As you can see, we beat the record by selling 3 more cars than that specific date. Congratulations!" Even Shiori had come by to see the celebration.

"Eh, now that we broke the record, do you think we'd get a promotion?" Chan randomly asked Alice.

"Oh, stop thinking about money all the time. We'll get a raise, promotion, or both in due time. Oh! That reminds me. We need to go to Eliza's kindergarten graduation." With Marucho's permission, Alice and Chan were able to leave the showroom for the graduation party. Ace had also come.

"Thank you for coming, everyone! Let's celebrate as your children or grandchildren have successfully gone through their first year of school!" the teacher announced. A loud applause soared across the room as paper graduation hats were passed around to each student. Everyone was so happy and excited.

Alice took the party of five, including Ace, out for a celebration dinner that night at the Lobster Barrel. "What a splendid day this is!" Chan exclaimed. "First the broken record today at the showroom, then Fabia leaving forever, now Eliza's graduation. This is really worth celebrating. We want lobster!"

"Calm down, Chan. You can eat all the lobster you want. We get our dinner for free tonight. Are you sure you don't mind, Alice?" Joe yelled to the table behind him.

"I'm fine with that. I don't think that Eliza would eat as much as us, would she?" Alice smiled at Eliza. "Eat all you want, sweetie. You made it through your first year of school so perfectly that you'll be a second grader soon." A waitress came by to take their orders.

"I see that everything's been great with you so far, Alice." Ace complimented. "I know that Fabia's gone and you're actually excited. She actually broke up with me before she left, so I guess we have nothing to do with each other now, right?" Everyone except Eliza, who was talking to a kid at the next table, stared at Ace blankly.

"That's...nice. Let's eat dinner, everyone!" Jake ordered. The conversation was over.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

The next and final newspaper entry was printed in bigger text on tomorrow's paper. The title read clearly, "Book Signing at Odaiba Library. Featuring Shun Kazami and His Newest Book." Surely, Alice didn't want to miss out, just like how she never missed out on a journal entry that Shun sent back. Just as Alice was going to finish her breakfast and change, Ace walked down and asked if they could talk for a while. Alice accepted, and the two sat down at the chairs.

"Alice, I was thinking about what I said about Fabia yesterday. Yes, I know that she's leaving forever. Maybe she was right. Maybe we weren't fit for each other. But do you know what I think the best thing in my life was."

"Your times with Fabia?"

"No. It was out ten years long of marriage. If I had only twenty hours left to live, I wouldn't want to live a rich live. I'd just want to spend a quiet and peaceful day with you and just you. Do you think we can go back to those days again?"

"Back? Again? Ace, I appreciate that you treasured those ten years and learned your lesson. The problem is, I _can't_ go back. I'm sorry, Ace, but I really have to move on with my life. I hope that you'll move on as well."

After that, Ace seemed disappointed, but he knew the things like this would happen. "Thanks for listening to me, Alice. I know I've done things that have angered you, and I'm very sorry for that. Just remember to keep in touch, okay?"

"I will. Good luck at your new job at Kagoshima. Remember to come back when you have time." Alice followed Ace out the door as he took a taxi. _Fabia left, __and__ so did Ace. I hope I get to see you soon, Shun._ Speaking of Shun, Alice quickly changed her clothes and took the car to the library.

**~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~**

"...Thanks for coming. See you next time." Despite signing more than one hundred of his documentary books, Under the Blue Sky and Gentle Winds_,_Shun's hand still didn't hurt. "Next. What's your name?"

"Marina." The girl replied. Shun took her book, opened the cover, and signed it. "Thank you so much, Kazami-san! I hope you go on another great adventure."

"Thanks for your words. See you next time. Next." As the line moved on, Alice realized that she was the last person in line. "Thank you so much. Hope to see you soon. Next." _I wonder if she came after all those hints __and__ notes in my journal entries on the newspapers..._

Alice waited nervously at the end of the line. _Oh dear, what if I stutter or something?! Somebody tell me what I should do right now!_ Alice felt her heart beat faster. The line got shorter and shorter. _Oh no!__ I'm getting closer. Why am I acting like this?_

"Really? What a coincidence. Thanks anyway. Next." Alice was the last person left in the line. "What's your name?"

"Just a close friend of yours." Immediately, Shun stopped writing and looked up to see Alice. "Hi Shun."

"Alice...it's really you." He put the book and pen aside. "So how's it been? I heard that Fabia and Ace both left? Feeling better?"

"Not at all." Suddenly, Alice gave Shun a tight but warm hug. "But as long as you're here, everything's better."

Shun blushed slightly but returned the hug. "Eh, you still want a copy of my book?"

"No thank you. I got really tired of reading all those books you gave me. Besides, you can tell me everything you experienced in the wilderness, won't you?" Alice had an innocent smile on her face.

"Of course I will. But you have some explaining as well." Shun looked around at the library. "You want to help me pack up?"

"Sure." Just as Alice was going to pick up the chairs, Shun gave her a sudden hug, which made Alice blush.

"Thanks for accepting me after all this. I hope you didn't force yourself to reject Ace."

"No, I didn't. I realized that I should really move on. Right?" Alice laughed as she and Shun packed out the supplies.


End file.
